Subnetting is used within Internet Protocol (IP) networks for various reasons, such as reducing network congestion, improving security, and/or connecting different types of network topologies to one another. A subnet may include multiple network nodes that are connected to one another by way of a router. In some cases, each of the network nodes within the subnet may link to the router via a single interface. In other cases, the network nodes within the subnet may link to the router via multiple interfaces. In the event that the network nodes within the subnet link to the router via multiple interfaces, the router may need to proxy intra-subnet traffic across these interfaces.
Unfortunately, conventional approaches to such proxying may have certain shortcomings and/or deficiencies. For example, a subnet may include multiple network nodes that are connected to a router via multiple interfaces. In conventional approaches, the router may be unable to exchange the link-local address of a network node connected to one interface with another network node connected to another interface even though the source and destination nodes belong to the same subnet. As a result, the router may end up dropping any packets that originate from the network node and are intended for the other network node, thereby potentially resulting in connectivity issues and/or inefficient resource consumption.
Moreover, link-local addresses may be unique only within the subnet and/or network segment. Accordingly, network nodes in different subnets and/or on different network segments may share the same link-local address. As a result, even ignoring any non-forwarding rules, the router may be unable to identify the correct destination for a packet since the link-local address of the destination node is not necessarily unique across all of the subnets and/or segments. In other words, the router may be unsure of where to forward the link-local packet and thus drop the link-local packet due to confusion and/or ambiguity.
The instant disclosure, therefore, identifies and addresses a need for methods, systems, and apparatuses for proxying intra-subnet traffic across multiple interfaces within networks.